Dutch Court Sentences Assad Interrogator to 26 Years for Torture

A Dutch court convicted a former Assad regime interrogator of torturing eight detainees at detention centers near Salamiyah and sentenced him to 26 years—among Europe's heaviest universal jurisdiction penalties for Syrian crimes. The conviction relied on testimony from scattered survivors and documentary evidence gathered years after the detentions. With the ICC unable to prosecute Syria and Russia blocking UN referrals, European courts have become the primary venue for accountability.